MLB spokesperson Rich Levin told the Mercury News that territorial rights would be discussed by the commission, but Neukom said he did not believe Commissioner Bud Selig intends to challenge the Giants’ claim to the Silicon Valley.

“Read the statement,” Neukom said. “It says Major League Baseball wants to help them find a home in their territory. Alameda and Contra Costa county is their territory, full stop. And we support that and hope it’s successful.”

Does Neukom anticipate a challenge to Santa Clara County?

“I anticipate the committee will do what the commissioner has said he wants it to do,” Neukom said. “His charter is to try to find a home for the Athletics in their territory. We wish them well.”

It would take a vote of three-quarters of the league’s 30 owners to override the club’s territorial rights. Asked if he felt he had the support of other owners, Neukom said, “You’re way ahead of the state of play. The question is, and I think it’s very sensible by the commissioner, that they have territorial rights and we have territorial rights. They need a better home. That’s fine, we agree with that, we support them in that, and the commissioner is saying, `Let’s find them a home in their territory.’ We hope they will do that.”

Will Neukom and the Giants have input in the process?

“Yes, you bet,” Neukom said. “The panel is going to ask us, I’m sure, some questions about this and we’ll cooperate fully and all of that. But again, the focus is to find a place for the A’s that gives them a really good major league park where they can be competitive and financially viable in their territory.”

Asked about a timetable, Neukom said he didn’t sense that one existed.

“I think they will take whatever time they need to get it done right, and we’re counting on them doing that,” he said.

Andrew Baggarly

Andrew Baggarly has documented the most eventful era in San Francisco Giants baseball history, having covered the team since 2004 for th​ree major media outlets including the San Jose Mercury News and the Oakland Tribune​. This is his 20th season as a baseball writer.
​Baggarly is the author of the bestselling book, A Band of Misfits: Tales of the 2010 San Francisco Giants, and the newly published Giant Splash: Bondsian Blasts, World Series Parades and Other Thrilling Moments By the Bay. Baggarly’s other notable life accomplishments include running as the Bratwurst in the Milwaukee Sausage Race and becoming a three-time Jeopardy! champion.

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This is some great stuff. What is the point of the committee in reality?

It is to show the SF Giants that there are not any other viable options in Contra Costa and Alameda counties and now with MLB stepping in that will give it the final stamp.

The A’s tried in Oakland for many years and the city is simply too poor to get a stadium in any decade regardless of the recession and credit crunch. They tried in Contra Costa County as well and Fremont for many years with no luck and wasted efforts.

The Giants have to understand their territory rights in the South Bay are now relative to if the A’s can stay in their territory of Alameda or Contra Costa Counties.

3/4 vote to override territory rights will be no problem. The other owners will see that there is nothing else Lew Wolff can do where he is outside of moving the team to San Jose or moving them out of the area completely.

The Giants do not deserve the entire 7 million person fan base in the Bay Area to themselves considering the A’s have won 4 titles in Oakland while the Giants have won…..that’s right! ZERO titles since moving to SF.

The other owners will have no choice but to pony up cash and vote to let the A’s move to San Jose eventually as there will be no other way when they see the A’s are stuck.

This is similar to the Baltimore Orioles/Washington Nationals situation where the O’s owner got paid a handsome sum of money after the owners overrode his territory rights for the Nationals to move into his area.

If I am the Giants I am —— a brick pretty hard as if MLB is getting involved that means MLB will do what it takes to keep the A’s in Northern California.

Even if that means overriding the Giants rights to Santa Clara County…but look on the bright side Giants…..at least the ballpark will be paid off for in one payment and you can boost the payroll to compete with the San Jose A’s!

But then again if the A’s move to San Jose then their payroll will DWARF the Giants payroll!

This will be fun to see unfold!

Hanging Slider

Bill Neukom says…..

“….the focus is to find a place for the A’s that gives them a really good major league park where they can be competitive and financially viable in their territory.”

What Neukom had in mind…..
Bismarck, ND

Dan

The whole “territory” thing is ridiculous. If the A’s can make it work in San Jose or Santa Clara, then they should do it. There is more space and more money to be had in the Silicon Valley than along 880.

I am a Giants fan living in San Jose. If the A’s were to move here, I would remain a Giants fan, period. I would go to just as many Giants games as I do now and watch the same amount on TV. The only thing that would change is I would go to a few more A’s games in addition to, not to the detriment of, my Giants attendance.

I really just don’t see how the A’s moving here works to the detriment of the Giants. For every fairweather San Jose fan that the Giants lose because the A’s are now closer, there will be a fairweather A’s fan in the North Bay or Central Valley that will find SJ too far and go to Giants games instead.

So I guess Larry Baer and Bill “Duke” Neukom just need to convince 8 other owners the legitimacy of their South Bay rights…, or rather, that an A’s move to SJ is somehow bad business.

I wonder if this committee is a procedural stepping stone for an A’s move down to SJ, or just more telling us what everybody already knows. There’s clearly a great deal of trepidation among owners to just deal with the issue head on… That’s either a cultural norm among MLB owners, or speaks to how well Baer and Neukom frame the issue.

Tony D.

#3 Dan,

You are the Man! All of my co-worker Giants fans feel the same exact way you do. That’s why I’m scratching my head on why the Giants are hell bent on keeping the A’s out of San Jose. Heck, if they want to keep the stupid rights to Santa Clara County, fine! Just let the A’s move to a ballpark in downtown San Jose.

I still say the Giants/Neukom are posturing for an Orioles/Nationals-type deal from MLB. They’d be completely stupid to turn down possible compensation ($$$$) and fight the A’s moving over 40 miles further from them.

Will T. T.

Don’t mess with Dukem Neukom. The dude took on the Department of Justice in the Internet Explorer antitrust case, and Microsoft got a slap on the wrist. If he can beat the DOJ, what chance would a couple of chumps like Selig and Wolff have if the territorial issue went to court?